Button rues loss of power while set for points

McLaren driver Jenson Button was left to lament a loss of power which he believes cost him a haul of points at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Button qualified in 14th place but moved up into the top 10 early on before he slowed in his McLaren, eventually parking his MP4-31 by the side of the circuit.

While team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne was able to collect a point on his debut, Button reckons he could have been in the fight higher up the order.

"We made some real progress with the car this weekend," he said.

"Qualifying didn’t go fully to plan, but the pace was there – it’s just been a tough weekend because I think we could have scored a good amount of points. Still, I think we can take away some positives in terms of our outright pace.

"In the race I had a loss of power and then the car stopped. We don’t know yet exactly what the problem was – the car just cut out. I initially felt it out of Turn 2, and I eventually stopped at Turn 10.

"It’s a pity; I got a really good start, and made up lots of places, overtaking three cars at Turn 10 under braking, so I was pretty chuffed with that.

"So it’s a real shame, as I say: before I stopped, I was saving a lot of fuel, my tyres were in good condition, and I was just cruising behind the cars in front.

"We were going to try something a little bit different with the strategy; the cars we were sat behind finished fifth and sixth, and I felt like we could have had a good fight with them. "